[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-starting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu":3,"chapter-starting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu-starting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu-chapter-40":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Starting from Stealing the Role in 1995 Huayu",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2321029,4540,"Chapter 40: Royalty","starting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu-chapter-40",40,"\u003Cp>“Publishing?” Wu Jianping glanced at his son.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t even think about it before the New Year.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After creating their first works, new writers are always eager, desperate to see their books published and sold the very next day, hungering for readers to see them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping understood his son’s eagerness to publish “Bright Sword,” but with January nearing the Spring Festival, everyone at the publishing house was already thinking of the holiday—no matter how well everything passed review, they’d still push it to after the New Year.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuchen fell silent for a moment; he hadn’t expected even his father, an insider, would have to wait until after the New Year. By then, market response would take at least one or two months—so if he wanted to see income from the novel, he’d likely have to wait at least half a year.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in China these days, a lot of things just work like this—efficiency isn’t prized, and he wasn’t some big shot who could expect special treatment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuchen sighed inwardly; this kind of thing couldn’t be rushed. Then he asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dad, can you guess how many percent the royalty rate will be?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This directly affected the income from “Bright Sword,” so Wu Yuchen couldn’t help but care.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping held up his thumb and index finger to show a gesture.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Eight percent? Dad, can’t you use your inside connections to get ten?” Wu Yuchen frowned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey, what are you thinking? Eight percent is already the publishing house being generous to me!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping chuckled and scolded, then explained to his son the current royalty situation for authors in China.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Currently, royalty rates for authors in China range from 4% to 15%.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you’re a completely unknown new writer and your book is barely good enough to be published as a trial, you get the minimum 4%; if the publisher has some confidence in your work, they might offer 5%–6%; writers with minor fame can get 7%–8%; getting 10% means you’ve crossed the threshold into recognized author status.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The current ceiling for royalties in China is 15%. Do you know who holds it?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Setting aside Jin Yong, who’s from Hong Kong, it’s not big names like Shi Tiesheng or Yu Hua—it’s Zheng Yuanjie, the King of Fairy Tales. He writes children’s books, but they’re wildly popular!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Hua’s “To Live” only reached 15% after it became a hit and went through reprints. In the end, it all comes down to sales.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing his father’s explanation, Wu Yuchen finally understood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Originally, he’d thought that in his past life, Han Han had received 8% royalty for his first novel “The Three Gates,” so he assumed his father should get more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But when Han Han published “The Three Gates,” he was already a famous teenage prodigy, so the publisher was willing to give him 8%.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Later, this guy broke China’s 15% royalty ceiling and got 20%, prompting Zheng Yuanjie to directly post on his blog:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Since civilization, literature, and royalties began on Earth, the last author to enjoy a 20% royalty rate was Hu Shi. Back then, Hu Shi set his own royalty rate at 15% for the first edition and 20% for reprints—he refused to publish below that standard. My ‘Pipilu Total Mobilization’ has a 15% royalty rate. I too must learn from Hu Shi, learn from Han Han, and strive for 20%.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was old Zheng using Han Han to pressure his own publishing house.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bringing his thoughts back, Wu Yuchen mused silently: if that’s the case, then Wu Jianping getting 8% really was a favor from the publisher. Of course, they likely also knew Wu Jianping’s caliber.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, in Wu Yuchen’s eyes, 8% was still too low.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuchen had a sudden idea and asked his father:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dad, have you ever heard of the foreign tiered royalty system?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You mean…” Wu Jianping, having worked in the industry for years, naturally knew of it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dad, can you negotiate with the publisher? Give up the 8%—let’s go with tiered royalties.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Below 10,000 copies sold, get 4%; 10,000–30,000 copies, get 5%; 30,000–50,000 copies, get 6%; and so on—once sales hit 500,000, get 10%; at 1 million, get 12%; if…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping laughed and waved his hand to cut him off: “Wait a minute—1 million copies? You really think your book’s going to be a smash hit?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuchen grinned: “Dad, I just have faith in you!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping shook his head: “It’s not as simple as you think!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Military-themed novels had never been especially popular before, so Wu Jianping remained cautious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dad, forget whether our book will be a hit—just tell me, can tiered royalties even work?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping hesitated, then said: “Hard to say. Our publishing house has never done this, and it’s rarely heard of in China—probably need a meeting to discuss it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If it’s never been done before, then let you be the first to break ground!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Aren’t we all supposed to learn from foreign advanced practices now?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If this tiered royalty system doesn’t exist in China, your publishing house should be the first to try it—then your appeal to authors will definitely surpass your competitors!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuchen enthusiastically urged his father.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing his son so eager—and his words had some merit—Wu Jianping clicked his tongue:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ll ask around at the office first. No guarantees.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d been there a long time, held a decent position—even the top boss would listen to him. He could raise it as a pilot case using his own book.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dad, you’ll make it happen!” Wu Yuchen flattered his father.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey, you’re always giving me trouble!” Wu Jianping laughed, pointing at his son.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping, now middle-aged, had long grown accustomed to a relaxed, laid-back rhythm of life—until his son suddenly dragged him into action.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But what could he do? After all, this was his son.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next day, Wu Yuchen returned to school early.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He found Jiang Qin in a corner of campus, practicing tongue twisters in Mandarin with several other girls during morning exercise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t interrupt them, just stood aside, watching with interest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But a living person standing there couldn’t go unnoticed for long—the girls spotted him quickly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The girls giggled at Jiang Qin, who pushed them away and ran over to Wu Yuchen, her face half-pleased, half-embarrassed: “Why are you here?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Missed you~”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuchen’s words made Jiang Qin’s heart flutter sweetly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After you finish practicing, let’s have breakfast together,” Wu Yuchen said, smiling, no longer teasing her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hadn’t even eaten at home—he came just to build rapport with Jiang Qin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After yesterday’s events, they were officially a couple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuchen had no other ulterior motives—he simply wanted to max out their intimacy as soon as possible, to achieve the “home run” milestone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thanks for all the votes! Any booklist masters out there? Please add us to your list!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1143,"2026-06-20T16:09:29.273Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","eb4feca403271f2624aa0e78cfff6ab330919b3e07fc018b9a20c87ff37d6634","starting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu-chapter-41","starting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu-chapter-39",335,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fstarting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu-cover.jpg"]